About Our Team
Julie Bear Don't Walk, L AC
Kansas license #23-00014
Julie Bear Don’t Walk's greatest passion is helping people feel better in their bodies and their lives. As a healer, mother and wife, Julie understands that life and health are creative processes, continually evolving with the different phases of our lives. As a licensed acupuncturist and integrative health practitioner, Julie is deeply committed to making the world a better place with Chinese Medicine. Julie is the Clinic Director, overseeing all patient care, in consultation with Associate Acupuncturists Michelle Truckey and Sarah Sievers. In addition to directing the clinic, and seeing patients, she mentors other Acupuncturists around the world, helping them embody Chinese Medicine principles in their practices and with their teams.
Julie decided to study acupuncture and integrative health after experiencing the profound healing effects of acupuncture and herbal medicine. Plagued with monstrous PMS, anxiety, depression and a family history of addiction, she sought help 16 years ago from an acupuncturist in Seattle. After her first acupuncture treatment, she understood that there was help and hope — that she could actually feel and get better, and that her long family history of depression, trauma, pain, addiction and suffering did not have to be her path. With this deep clarity, she left her career in the arts, and decided to study acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine. In 2020, Julie began an apprenticeship that led to her take on a larger leadership role within Chinese Medicine, mentoring other practitioners. This fulfills Julie’s commitment to helping more people with Chinese Medicine, making the world a significantly better place.
Julie received her Master’s degree from Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, Chicago, and is nationally board certified in Acupuncture and Chinese Herbology. Julie also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Comparative History of Ideas, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture, both from University of Washington, Seattle.
Julie’s last name, Bear Don’t Walk, comes from her husband, Scott Bear Don’t Walk, an American Indian and a member of Crow Tribe of Montana. The name originates in a vision his great grandfather had of a very old bear hunting for salmon in a river, which represents sacred healing and lifelong wellbeing. By taking this name, Julie accepts the responsibility and privilege that comes with helping people and practitioners follow their path to wellbeing.
Michelle Truckey, l Ac
Kansas License #23-00076
Michelle’s greatest joy in life is helping people truly heal. The moment someone comes in and says “I cannot BELIEVE how much better I am!” is music to her ears—and precisely why she practices Chinese Medicine. Michelle is our most experienced practitioner (she has as much experience as Julie, having been in practice for over ten years), and our only Acupuncturist who has studied Chinese Medicine IN China. During her months of clinical rotations in China, Michelle mentored with some of the best acupuncturists in the world. This experience informs Michelle’s approach of getting to the root of the issue, so that symptoms disappear as the body remembers how to heal.
Michelle is most passionate about treating women’s health—infertility, menstrual issues, hormone balancing and perimenopause. Michelle has significant experience helping patients realize their dream of becoming pregnant—in collaboration with Western Medicine—or not— depending on patient preference. She also loves helping people get relief from acute and chronic pain, addressing and resolving digestive issues, and helping people breathe better by treating allergies and asthma. Michelle is innately curious and is constantly learning in order to help her patients achieve their goals of feeling better, sustainably.
Michelle is a native Midwesterner, born and raised in rural Wisconsin. After living in Chicago, Austin, and Albuquerque, she is thrilled to be back in the Midwest. An avid reader, Michelle delights in exploring new ideas and expanding her knowledge. She is reliably one of the smartest people in any room, quietly observing and figuring out, then moving in with precision to efficiently solve any problem. Michelle lives with her husband and cat, and enjoys exploring the midwest landscape. To recharge, she does puzzles and games, and
Michelle started her undergraduate career at the University of Chicago, and graduated with her Master’s of Science in Traditional Chinese Medicine from AOMA Graduate School of Integrative Medicine in 2013. She is nationally board certified in both Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs.
sarah Sievers, L AC
License #23-00041
Sarah’s goal every day is to help someone live their life more comfortably and to help those who have lost hope or have been told they "just have to live with it." She believes a diagnosis should not be a label but rather the beginning of a journey to greater health. Sarah treats all ailments and has a special fondness for nervous system disorders and pain.
Sarah was born in Iowa and grew up in a small town. Her mother is a nurse who showed her the value of a caring heart and her father who is a mechanic taught her that anything can be fixed if you have the right tools, knowhow and some perseverance.
Her first experience with acupuncture was as a 19 year old suffering from interstitial cystitis. She had a complete resolution of symptoms with acupuncture and herbs, and has been fascinated by the holistic and effective nature of Chinese Medicine ever since.
Sarah is the only Licensed Acupuncturist in the state of Kansas to be certified in Neuro-Acupuncture, which is a specialized form of acupuncture that helps alleviate neurological symptoms such as tremors, nerve degeneration, pain from nerve damage, peripheral neuropathy, and seizures. She often helps people who have these symptoms as a result of being diagnosed with MS, Parkinson’s, post-viral syndrome, chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuroapathy and other unexplained neurological issues. She graduated from Southwest Acupuncture College in 2017 with a Masters of Science in Oriental Medicine. She is a Licensed Acupuncturist in Kansas and a Doctor of Oriental Medicine in New Mexico.
Sarah spends as much time as possible with her husband, three children, and pets. She knows endless amounts of odd animal trivia as she was a veterinary technician prior to becoming an acupuncturist. She collects books, refinishes furniture, and is perpetually in search of more knowledge--because as she says “the world needs nerds, too”.